Finale Results - DWTS10

Thoughts on last nights results are behind the cut tag, becuase it got long and rambly and I don't want to spoil anyone who doesn't want to be spoiled.....

So, after all is said and done, the DWTS results were entirely predictable - Erin & Maks 3rd, Evan & Anna 2nd, and Nicole & Derek take the mirrorball trophy.

What a surprise. (/sarcasm)

In the interests of full disclosure, I should say that I've drafted and re-drafted this post several times because I don't want it to be another rant about why Nicole should never have been booked for the show in the first place (did that yesterday) and because there is a significant danger of straying into "this shit is rigged" territory (as Holly Maries Combs tweeted when Shannen Doherty was eliminated - I thought she had a point then, still think she has one now.)

My first reaction to the result, more than anything, is disappointment. The judges have been ramming down our thriats since week one that this is the best season ever. But Nicole's been great since week one, and they've been falling over themselves to praise her since week one. There's been no journey, no improvement - as you can probably tell, I'm one of those people who sees Strictly / DWTS as a show that takes a celeb, teaches them how to dance and sees how well they get on. Both Evan and Erin improved over the weeks - Nicole started great, so she had nowhere to go.

This ties into one of my other big problems (and on Strictly as well, it's not just a DWTS thing) - the bias that the judges have to certain pros / couples. Nicole & Derek were a prime example of this. They do a quickstep that is blatently not a quickstep (break hold, there's a lift) and get a 9 and an 8. Their samba was lacking a lot of the basic samba steps (which Derek may or may not have admitted taking out because Nicole couldn't do them - I'm not 100% sure on that). OTOH, Len was downright rude to Erin & Maks on several occasions. (HIs "Look at me Erin!" outburst was very similiar to the way he went for Rachel Stevens after her jive). When Evan was too focused on the technical aspects, he was blasted for not focussing on performance / connecting with Anna. When he delivered the performance they wanted, he was blasted for lack of precision. He couldn't do right for doing wrong; yet Nicole and Derek were rarely picked up on it (except for Len going nuts over the Not-A-Quickstep and giving them a 6).

All that said, when you reflect over the season, she was the best dancer overall, so I'm not surprised / upset she won. Lets face it, she delivered some phenonenal performances - I'm thinking of her 50's paso and her AT in particular. But when all is said and done I just couldn't warm to her, and Lord knows I loathe Derek with a passion.

I have to say I'm very disappointed in Len, who apparently told N&D after their final dance that they should win the competition. Nothing wrong with that in and of itself - except when Evan & Anna are waiting in the wings to do THEIR final dance. Totally tacky and classless - mind you, given that the judges have been praising them to the skies for the whole season, it's not surprising, just really really horrible.

And I feel so sorry for Anna Trebunskya, because you just know next season she's going to be stuck with her usual dreadful can't get past week 3 or 4 partners. OTOH, Derek is now completely due a complete duffer - then we'll really see his mettle as a teacher / choreographer.

This win also means that each of the Wonder Triplets has 2 MBT's now - what do you want to bet that a major storyline next season is "Who will be the first 3 time winner?" (And sadly, with Julianne allegedly coming back, you know that's going to happen).

In an ideal world, I'd like Derek to take a break from DTWS now, because I have honestly reached a point where just looking at him makes my blood boil (shades of Johnny Fairplay for those of you who've heard me rant about Survivor!)

And now I've just jinxed myself, because he'll probably wind up taking a break from DWTS to do Strictly. There's not enough wine in the world to make that bearable!

Then again, the silver lining in all this is that it's now impossible for the Beeb to get Nicole to do Strictly (unless its a guest dance with one of the pros) - you cannot have a DWTS winner competing against people who've never danced before. (Though the thought just popped into my head of a combined DWTS / Strictly one-off Best of the Best event - take 8-10 of the pairings and get them to compete against each other - kinda like they did in the Strictly Christmas Special a few years ago. That would be glorious!